


Nekoma Manager: Defender of First-Years and Kenma

by aspiringauthorintraining



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Slice of Life, all the first-years are my babies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:41:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26244316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aspiringauthorintraining/pseuds/aspiringauthorintraining
Summary: “I don’t get paid enough to do this.” Sakura muttered, before Kenma spoke up.“You don’t get paid at all.” he responded, not bothering to look up from his game.“You’re right.” she realized, before thinking. “You know, I should just quit and get a job where I actually get paid.”“Eh, Saku-chan. You say that, but I know you’ll miss us if you do.” Kuroo teased, poking her cheek.
Relationships: Haiba Lev/Original Female Character(s), Inuoka Sou/Original Female Character(s), Kai Nobuyuki/Original Female Character(s), Kozume Kenma/Original Female Character(s), Kuroo Tetsurou/Original Female Character(s), Nekoma Volleyball Club/Original Character(s), Yaku Morisuke/Original Female Character(s), Yamamoto Taketora/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 80





	1. Chapter 1

“Hey, hey, hey! What business do you have with our setter?”

“HEY, HEY, HEY! What business do you have with our first-year?” Ryūnosuke Tanaka leered back at the said “city boy”, Taketora Yamamoto.

Drowning out their stupidity, the rest of Karasuno and Nekoma volleyball club members ignored the two and went forth to great each other. 

“Kinoshita-san?” A pretty girl who looked about her age, tapped her shoulder from behind, introducing herself. “I’m Kiyoko Shimizu, third-year and the manager for Karasuno. You are the manager for Nekoma, correct?”

Sakura couldn’t help but smile at the girl’s ability to ignore Taketora’s uncomfortable staring. She, on the other hand, felt her skin prickling from Tanaka’s unwelcome gawking.

“They have a female manager!” Taketora and Tanaka cried in unison, with tears of joy.

“Stop making the Karasuno’s manager uncomfortable with your staring.” Yaku slapped his kouhai’s head, putting a momentary dent in his mohawk.

Karasuno’s vice captain, Koshi Sugawara just went for the hit, knowing words would not stop Tanaka.

And realizing she still hadn’t introduced herself to Kiyoko, she turned her attention back to the girl. “Ah, hai! I’m Kinoshita Sakura, but you can just call me Sakura! I’m a third-year too.” She smiled, happy she wasn’t going to be the only female manager there at the practice. And by Kiyoko’s happy demeanor, she could tell the Karasuno manager was thinking the exact same thing.

The two girls walked together towards the gym, where both teams were setting up the court to get ready for practice. Kiyoko went ahead inside to help their coach, while Sakura stayed back to make sure everyone made it inside. After checking for any stragglers, she attempted to walk into the gym, only to find the entrance blocked by the two team captains In the middle of weird power play.

“I’m looking forward to our game today.” Kuroo smiled exaggeratedly, shaking his fellow captain’s hand.

“I’m also looking forward to our game today.” Daichi Sumawara, the Karasuno captain replied back similarly.

Sakura stared at the exchange between the two captains, unsure whether to wait out their overfriendly handshaking, or just push through them. Realizing they weren’t going to budge anytime soon, she marched towards the doors to interrupt the childish contest.

“Kuroo, get your butt inside before I kick it inside for you.” Sakura threatened the tall boy.

Kuroo didn’t even flinch at her threat. “Saku-chan, must you always be so violent? You’re going to scare the Crow Captain here,” he said, finally breaking off the handshake. “Ah, Sumawara-san, this is our yakuza manager, Kinoshita Sakura.” he introduced, before whispering, “if there’s anyone you should watch out for on our team, it’s her.” 

Pushing Kuroo aside, she waved briefly to Daichi. “Nice to meet you! And call me Sakura,” she smiled. 

The captain returned her greeting, before excusing himself to deal with the energetic commotion caused by Hinata and Kageyama.

“Why can’t you be half as nice to me like you are to him?” Kuroo pouted while putting an arm around her shoulder.

Sakura rolled her eyes again, one of the many habits she formed after becoming the Nekoma volleyball team manager. “I have no choice but to resort to violence, since it seems it’s the only thing that’s proven effective, so far.” she reasoned, poking his side.  
“Go stretch,” Sakura ordered, pushing him towards the rest of the team warming up.

Kuroo gave a “hmph”, whining. “If only you treated me like you do Kenma and the first-years, would I listen to you more.”

“And if only I had a volleyball to pelt you with every time you said that, would I be the happiest girl in the world.”


	2. Chapter 2

“What was that? He did even look at the toss!” Coach Nekomata gasped, blindsided by Karasuno #10’s fast attack. 

And he wasn’t the only one. Sakura noticed a shift in Kenma’s eyes, similar to when he got a new game and was playing it for the first time. Playing a mock match against Karasuno was definitely a good change in pace for the boys, she mused.

If Karasuno played their cards right, or in this case their moves, Sakura wagered this wouldn’t be a one-time thing. After all, Coach Nekotoma was always wanting to have another ‘Battle of the Dumpster’ showdown. And it wasn’t everyday Coach Nekomata would agree to a practice match outside Tokyo. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Watching from the sidelines, Sakura smiled at the boys panting with sweat. It was nice to see the team, especially Kenma, so focused on the match, instead of holding back. 

With the final blow of the whistle, the practice was over. Playing another set after Nekoma’s win, clearly tired both teams out. Or at least, everyone except Karasuno’s #10, who clearly had more energy than he knew what to do with. Hinata was like the Energizer bunny, shouting for another set, while the rest dropped to floor, breathing heavily.

Grabbing the water bottles she had refilled with Kiyoko a few minutes prior, she walked around Nekoma’s side of the court, handing them out. Inuoka, who was passed out on the floor, didn’t even try to reach for the bottle handed to him. 

“Senpai, I can’t move my arms.” He whined cutely, staring at his arms in disbelief as they had betrayed his will to move them.

Sakura couldn’t help melt at his antics. She always had a soft spot for the first years. They were her baby kittens. And Inuoka, who just started on the team, tended to over exert himself to the point where he was constantly sore.

Sitting down next to his torso, she gently started to massage his left arm. Although this wasn’t the first time she was doing this, and definitely not the last based on Inuoka’s track record, a blush creeped up on the boy’s face.

“T-thank you, senpai!” he stuttered, his eyes filled with adoration for the Nekoma manager.

“Sakura-senpai, I can’t move my arms either!” she heard Taketora whine, waving his arms in her face.

“I suggest you go to the hospital then.” she responded, moving onto to massage Inuoka’s other arm.

“Oi, stop babying Inuoka. He’s going to get spoiled.” Kuroo called to Sakura from his spot.

“Are you jealous Kuroo? You want me to massage your arms too?” she replied, standing up. 

“Well, if you insist,” Kuroo grinned, as she walked towards him. 

Sakura smiled with tight lips, smacking the captain in the back of his head, retorting, “Massage them yourself.” 

“Ah, stop hitting me! I’m going to get brain damage.”

“I can’t damage what you don’t have.” 

Her smile dropped though, as soon as she noticed Kuroo’s uneasy face.

“Oh no, I’m getting dizzy.” he said; his eyes squeezed shut.

Sakura crouched down to inspect his head, her brows furrowing with concern. “Oh no. Did I hit too hard?” She rubbed the back of his head tenderly with a frown. “I’m sorry.”

His head rested on her shoulder as she directed her attention to softening the pain in the back of his head. She failed to notice, however, the sly grin forming on Kuroo’s face as he turned his head to the side.

“And that’s how you get our manager to give you a massage.” he smirked, looking at Taketora. He, in turn, failed to notice the hand quickly approaching his back.

“AYA!”

“And this is why I like the first years better!” she grumbled, pushing Kuroo off of her, who was grinning despite the pain.

On the side, Taketora nodded his head, taking his captain’s words to heart.

Kai chuckled at his fellow third-year friends. “Don’t listen to Kuroo, if you know what’s good for you Taketora,” he advised his kouhai.

“Alright boys, let’s start cleaning up.” Coach Naoi called out, saving Kuroo from more of Sakura’s painful slaps.


	3. Chapter 3

Despite offering to wait for the girl, Kiyoko assured her she would be fine washing the rest of Karasuno’s water bottles by herself, after Sakura had finished washing all of hers first. 

Walking back in, she immediately decided to ignore whatever was happening in the closet with Taketora and Tanaka. She had a feeling their conversation was one that she didn’t want any part of. Neither did she think she could keep up with Inuoka and Hinata’s conversation, with their interesting choice of sound effects scattered throughout their dialogue and their jumping.

She walked over to Kuroo and Tsukishima, who were also watching the first-years’ energetic conversation from the side with confused looks. 

“What the heck are they talking about?” She heard Tsukishima ask to no one in particular.

“They don’t sound like they’re in high school.” Kuroo responded. “But you on the other hand, maybe you should loosen up more.”

“I’m not good at that sort of thing.” The first-year replied. He was about to walk away, when he was stopped by Sakura’s questioning from behind.

“Tsukishima, is this kid bothering you?” she asked pointing to Kuroo.

“Kinoshita-san. Hello.” He said, staring down at the shorter girl.

“Eh, Kinoshita-san? You’re making me sound so old.” She made a face at the title. “Call me Sakura instead!” 

With a nod, he walked off without another word.

“Ah, youth.” Kuroo mused, watching Tsukishima walk away.

“What are you, an old grandpa?” Sakura jibed at his comment.

Kuroo grinned at her comment, leaning on her lazily. She struggled under the additional weight momentarily, before steadying under his arms. “You can be the walking stick for this old grandpa then.” 

“The bus is arriving soon! Let’s head outside!” The pair’s attention turned to Coach Naoi’s announcement, before looking around the gym to make sure everything was put away.

“Alright walking stick, do your job.” Kuroo ordered, pushing her in front and leaning forward on her back with his arms on her shoulders. 

Feeling a bit guilty about hitting him so hard before and because of their win during the practice match, she relented. “Hai, hai.” 

She grabbed at his crossed hands in her face, and dragged him towards the rest of the team. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“What the heck is that?” Kenma asked, looking at Taketora and Tanaka crying.

“Beats me. Don’t look at them too much.” Kuroo replied, still continuing to lean on Sakura, while waiting for their bus. He attention turned to Daichi, who approached them with a smile.

Sakura tried to move away, knowing the two captains were probably going to do what she had interrupted earlier in the day. But Kuroo didn’t budge, leaving her in the middle of their second passive-aggressive handshake. 

“We won’t lose next time.” Daichi stated with a tight smile.

“We won’t lose next time either.” Kuroo repeated back, his hold on Daichi’s tightening with each word.

Sakura on the other hand, felt suffocated by Kuroo’s arms tightening around her as a result of their bone-crunching handshake. 

“Stop it! You’re scaring us!” Yaku and Sugawara worried. “You’re also crushing Sakura!”

Thankfully, Sakura was able to wiggle out of Kuroo’s arms, leaving the two captains to continue their intense farewell, similar to their Coach Ukai and Naoi. After catching a breath, and rubbing her arms with a grimace, she took note of Kenma interacting with Hinata. From overhearing snippets of their conversation, she could tell Hinata would be a great friend and opponent for Kenma. Hopefully her pudding kouhai will come out of his shell a little bit more with the orange-haired first-year’s help. She was definitely looking forward to the next time the two teams met on court.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


	4. Chapter 4

“Oi!” 

The sound grabbed the attention of the Karasuno team members coming out of the bus.

The call had come from Kuroo, who was walking with the rest of the Nekoma volleyball club third-years and Kenma.

“Kiyoko-chan!” Sakura waved, bounding up to her friend. 

The two girls had unsurprisingly gotten along very well during the practice match they had a few months ago. Since then, they exchanged numbers, continuing their friendship through texting and talking over the phone. Both already had a lot in common from having to deal with rowdy teenage boys in a volleyball club for two years. 

“Hmm,” Sakura tilted her head at the short girl hiding behind Kiyoko. “Could this be the Yachi-san?”

Kiyoko nodded to her friend. “Yachi-san, this is Sakura. She’s the Nekoma volleyball club manager.”

Sakura waved at the small girl, smiling at her blushing face. “Hi Yachi-san! I’m Kinoshita Sakura! I’m so glad you decided to become a manager! Kiyoko was worried she wouldn’t be able to find a replacement for her once she graduated.”

Yachi slowly came out from behind Kiyoko, and returned the older girl’s greeting. “Nice to meet you Kinoshita-senpai! I’ve heard a lot about you as well!” Scared that Sakura might have misunderstood, she quickly added, “All good things!”

The Nekoma manager smiled warmly, reassuring the girl that there was no misunderstanding. “Haha, that’s a relief! Although if Kiyoko said that I was annoying, I would understand. I like to pester her with my constant texting.” 

Kiyoko couldn’t help but frown at her friend’s words. “Sakura-chan, I told you it’s never a bother. I always look forward to your texts.” She stated, making Sakura’s smile widen.

“Ah, Kiyoko-chan! You’re making me blush.” Sakura replied, covering her cheeks with her hands.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After everyone got off the bus, the two groups headed towards the gymnasium. 

Sakura ended up walking between Kuroo and Daichi, squinting suspiciously at the two. Kuroo glanced at her with a raised brow. 

“What?”

“Are you guys not going to do your passive aggressive handshaking today?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Kuroo innocently shrugged. 

She had more follow-up questions, but didn’t have a chance to ask due to a certain Nekoma member.

“G-g-g-“ A loud voice cried in anguish ahead. “Girls! There are two of them now! Now they’ve got a pretty one and a cute one!” Taketora’s wailed. “Two female managers! How unfaaaair!”

Sakura stopped alongside the two captains, watching the scene unfold with a look of disgust. Kuroo didn’t even try to hold in his laughter, while Kenma shook his head and returned to his video game.

“Saku-chan, I think Nekoma needs a female manager!” Kuroo snickered, patting her head in pity.

“What am I, a fucking potato?” She asked, elbowing the captain in his stomach, changing his laughing to a groan of pain.

“Sakura-senpaaai” The Nekoma boy with the mohawk whined, running over to them. “Can we get a girl manager? Karasuno has two now!”

Kuroo doubled over, laughing/crying his eyes out, while their vice captain, Kai, and star libero, Yaku, could only watch their kouhai’s impending doom unfold by his very own actions. Not wanting to have to deal with his whining so early in the morning, Sakura rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“How ‘bout I quit, and then you can bring in all the female managers you want Taketora?” she suggested to the boy. “In fact, I’ll go ahead and turn in my resignation letter to Coach right now.” She was joking, but was tempted to go through with her words, since it meant she could be back at home sleeping right now instead of having to deal with this nonsense. 

Taketora’s eyes widened with fear, suddenly gripping to his manager’s legs in desperation. “No senpai! That’s not what I meant. Please don’t leave us! Pleeeeease!” 

“Oi, let go of her you idiot.” Yaku griped, walking up and pulling forcefully on his kouhai’s ear. “She’s really going to quit if you keep this up.” So, Taketora had no choice but to follow his senpai, who was painfully pinching his ear, into the gym, while continuing to apologize.

“I don’t get paid enough to do this.” Sakura muttered, before Kenma spoke up.

“You don’t get paid at all.” he responded, not bothering to look up from his game.

“You’re right.” she realized, before thinking. “You know, I should just quit and get a job where I actually get paid.”

“Eh, Saku-chan. You say that, but I know you’ll miss us if you do.” Kuroo teased, poking her cheek.

Sakura swatted his finger away, scoffing but unable to hide her smile. “You’re right.” She agreed reluctantly. “I would miss Kenma too much.” 

Kenma tried to not look affected by her words, but failed when a blush creeped up on his face. 

“Aw, Kenma! Are you blushing?” She hugged the boy gleefully, making his face turn from pink to red. 

Kuroo watched the two with a pout. “What about me Saku-chan?”

“Getting away from you is the most tempting reason of all to quit.” she deadpanned.

“I’m hurt Saku-chan,” Kuroo pouted, resting his chin on the top of her head. “Should I plead like Taketora did to convince you otherwise?”

“If you want a black eye, sure.” she shrugged, used to his teasing.

“Can you even reach that hi-“ 

“Kuroo! Saku-chan!” A voice yelled ahead of them.

Bokuto was waving frantically at her from the gym entrance, his wide eyes filled energy. Next to him was Akaashi, shaking his head at his friend’s antics.

Sakura sighed at the scene, not having enough energy to put up with both Taketora and Bokuto in one morning. “Join the volleyball team they said. It’ll be fun they said.” she sighed again. “More like a pain in my ass.”

Kuroo grabbed her shoulders from behind, pushing her towards the duo. “Come on Potato-chan. The more you ignore him, the more annoying he’ll get.”

“Hai, hai.”


	5. Chapter 5

With all five schools having finally arrived, the practice matches were about to begin. And as a manager, it was her duty to make sure all the boys were stretched and warm-up. Problem was, one of their new members was no where to be seen.

“Inuoka, have you seen Lev?”

The first year shook his head. “He said he was going to the bathroom, but that was thirty minutes ago.”

Sakura sighed, adding ‘find Lev’ to her list of things to do. That was, until a whine came from behind her. Turning around, she saw a tall boy with silver hair mope towards her languidly. 

“Senpaiii~” Lev whined, clutching his forehead with one hand. 

“Where have you been Lev? We’re about to start soon, and you haven’t warmed up at all,” she frowned. 

“Sorry senpai. I got lost on the way to the bathroom and then I accidentally hit my head against the door frame.” The first-year rubbed his head with a wince, trying to ease the pain.

Sighing, she grabbed his hand and led him to the sideline, where the first aid kit was. “Didn’t I tell you to take a buddy with you if you go somewhere, since it’s your first time here?” 

She pointed to the floor, directing him to sit down so she could treat his injury. 

Lev’s eyes dropped downwards, as he hung his head at her words. “Sorry senpai,” he apologized. 

With him looking a sad, baby kitten, she couldn’t find the will to maintain her disappointed look. Sakura simply patted his head, trying her best not to hug him. She had a weak spot for her first-years, after all.

Dabbing some alcohol on the cut on his forehead to disinfect it, she then applied the bandaid, decorated with little volleyballs. Satisfied with her work, she gave him a thumbs up, signaling she was all done. 

“Thank you senpai, you’re the best!” Lev smiled, enveloping her in a hug. He scrambled up, planning to join the rest of his teammates, until an arm appeared in front of him. 

“Nuh-uh. Stretch first.” Sakura ordered. 

Lev’s shoulders dropped, combined with a pout. Sakura had to turn around to not give in to his pouting.

“Pouting isn’t going to get you out of this, Lev. I won’t let you play if you don’t warm-up.”

There were some things even she wouldn’t give in for the first-years. And it was better, in her opinion, for him to frown and sulk now while doing his stretches, rather than whine later about his sore muscles.

“Hai, senpai,” he relented sadly, before reluctantly starting his stretches on the sideline.

With a satisfied smile, she turned around to pick up the basket that was next to the first aid kit, which contained the team’s practice jerseys. She had made sure to wash them throughly after noticing a strange smell on the clothes.

Walking over to the where the rest of Nekoma team stood, she started to hand out the washed jerseys. Upon receiving the clothing, all the members started to sniff it cautiously.

“Ooh, senpai washed the jerseys for us!” Inuoka exclaimed, relieved at the flowery scent coming off his jersey. 

Even Kenma briefly smelt his, before sighing in relief.

Noticing her curious eyes, Kai explained. “Coach Naoi washed them last time, since you were out sick.”

“But they ended up smelling even worse than before.” Yaku finished off.

“So that explains the strange smell they had!” 

All the members shivered at the memory of the stink. 

“Please don’t ever get sick again, senpai!” Taketora pleaded, but came out muffled due to his face being buried in his jersey. “You make them smell so nice like you!”

Yaku sighed happily, rubbing his nose against his jersey. “I normally wouldn’t agree with anything Taketora says, but he’s right. Please never get sick again, Sakura-chan.” 

The rest of the team nodded in agreement. 

“Or at least tell us if you are, so we can skip practice that week.” Kuroo grinned.

“Mind repeating what you just said Kuroo?” Coach Nekomata cut in. “My ears must be getting old, because I thought I heard something about skipping practice?”

“S-sensei...” Kuroo trailed off nervously, not having expected their two coaches to overhear their conversation. 

“He said that he wants Sakura-senpai to let us know when she’s sick, so we can all skip practice together!” Lev repeated innocently, just joining the group after having finished his warm-up. 

“Hahahaha!” The coach belted out laughing as Lev was pelted in the back of the head with a ball, by Kuroo. 

Kai, as vice captain, tried to reason with their coach. “Sensei, you cancelled practice that week, after the smell stunk up the whole gym,” he reminded Nekomata. “The place had to be fumigated!”

“Ah, yes. Well in that case,” Coach Nekomata rubbed his chin in deep thinking, “from here on out, practice will be cancelled if Sakura-san is sick.” He hummed in approval at his decision. 

“I try to do something nice, and this is the thanks I get?” Coach Naoi sulked. “But I agree as well,” he quickly relented, remembering the chaos that ensued that particular day. “Anyways, we’re up against Fukurōdani for our first practice match, so get ready to play.”

“Hai!” The whole team chorused in unison.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Oye, Kuroo! Ready to play against one of the top five spikers in the nation?” Bokuto taunted, walking up to the net from the other side of the court.

“I see Bokuto-san is pumped up as ever.” Sakura noted, the Fukurōdani captain reminding her of a certain Karasuno player, who also had limitless energy.

She stood next to the Fukurōdani managers, Yukie and Kaori, who were also third-years. Both teams frequently played against each other, whether it was practice or official matches, due to their membership in the Fukurōdani Academy group. As a result, not only were the players close to each other, but the managers were as well. 

“You don’t know the half of it, Saku-chan,” Yukie groaned, complaining to the Nekoma manager. “He was practically vibrating in his seat, and kept the whole bus up with his talking. I wasn’t able to get any sleep. I’m running on pure coffee right now.” 

“He has the energy of ten first-year boys rolled into one owl-headed body.” Kaori added, her eyes blinking slowly from being sleep deprived.

“You know, I’ve always wondered if he styles his hair like that on purpose. Or if it just so happened to fit with the school mascot.” Sakura commented, watching as the both teams got into their positions.

“No one knows. It’s one of those unsolved mysteries.”

The girls laughed at Yukie’s words.

“Anyways, I guess it’s already time to start the betting then,” Yukie said, pointing out the already started match.

Whenever the two teams would have a practice match, the girls made it a tradition to bet on exactly when Bokuto’s notorious emo-phase would come out to play. Of course, they made sure the boy in question had no idea about the two, going on three, year tradition. 

“Hmm, I say it’ll be the by the third time his spike gets blocked.” Kaori wagered.

“Nah, I think it won’t come out until the second set starts. He’s too hyped up right now to get down.”

“I don’t know, Yukie.” Sakura reasoned. “Kuroo was brushing up on owl disses during the bus ride over. And Bokuto hasn’t played against our new baby giant Lev, yet.”

“Eh, I’m too tired to think rationally right now. I’ll stand by my first guess.” Yukie responded, leaning her head against Sakura’s shoulder and closing her eyes.

“You’ll get hit by the ball if you fall asleep here, Yukie.” Kaori mumbled, trying to keep her eyes open. 

“Saku-chan will protect me. Right, Saku-chan?” Yukie didn’t even wait for an answer, as she started to quietly snore.

“Ah, then please take care of us, Saku-chan.” Kaori bowed, before leaning on her fellow manager to doze off.

__________

(A/N): I cross post this on Tumblr, but on Tumblr it's (Y/N) instead of Sakura. So if you want to really be a part of the story, head over to my tumblr lol. It's the same handle. :) Safe readings!


	6. Chapter 6

Sakura continued to observe the match, as the Fukurōdani managers slept away. It was amazing how they could sleep through all the noise, and thankfully the ball hadn’t come their way so far.

The referee overseeing their practice match blew his whistle, signaling for the teams to switch sides. The two sleeping managers jolted awake at the ear-piercing noise.

“It’s the end of the first set,” she told the girls, who were not quite awake yet.

“I guess we should go see if they need their water bottles filled.” Kaori suggested to Yukie, sleepily.

“Hai,” the girl responded.

Yukie and Kaori thanked Sakura for her ‘protection’ during their nap and walked off to check up on their team.

“Sakura-senpai~,” she heard Inuoka call her when she neared the Nekoma team.

“Hmm?”

“Do you think I could...” he trailed off, mumbling the rest with a blushing face.

“What was that?”

Inuoka took a deep breath before repeating his words. “DoyouthinkIcangetabandaidtoo?”

“You want a bandaid?” She asked him, deciphering his fast talk. “Did you get hurt?”

“Ah, no. I saw Lev’s and thought it looked cool.” He explained while scratching his head in embarrassment.

“I see.” She smiled at the blushing first year. He was too cute. “Of course you can!”

Grabbing her first aid kit, she grabbed a few different colored ones, showing them to Inuoka.

“Which color do you want?”

“The blue one!”

“Here you go bud.”

His eyes lit up at blue bandaid covered in tiny volleyballs. He reminded her of a kitten getting a new toy.

“Thanks senpai! You’re the best!” he exclaimed, bouncing away to show Lev his new bandaid.

Her heart couldn’t help but melt at how happy the bandaid made him. Her first-years were too adorable.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Yaku?” Sakura asked, walking over to him after he was swapped out of the match with Inuoka.

“What’s up?”

“Is you’re hand okay?” She asked, concerned. “I noticed you keep looking at it after that save you just did.”

“Eh, it’s not a big deal. It just stings a bit from sliding against the floor too hard,” he tried to explain, nonchalantly.

“Big or small, it’s still a injury. Let me see.”

There was a small abrasion on his finger from the friction of sliding against the floor too fast. After inspecting his hand, she grabbed one of the alcohol wipes.

“Sorry, this is gonna sting a little,” she warned.

Making sure the area was cleaned, she gently covered it with a bandaid similar to the Lev and Inuoka had, but black.

“There, good as new!”

“Ever the mother hen, Sakura.” He chuckled. “Thanks.”

“Anytime,” she replied, giving him a wink.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sakura had noticed something towards the end of the first day of training.

Somehow, almost all of the Nekoma team members had one of her volleyball bandaids on.

After the two first-years and Yaku, Kai had come up for one on his chin after a bad flying. Taketora had scratched a bug bite harder than he thought, causing a need for one to stop the bleeding. Shohei had a previous cut, but his old bandaid had fallen off, needing a new one. The only ones who didn’t have one were Kuroo and Kenma, but she probably could get Kenma to wear one if she asked nicely.

Was it a waste of a bandaid? Eh, debatable. But would it be worth it? Oh, definitely.

The boys were currently taking a short break, before the last practice match of the day; and during breaks, she normally sat with Kuroo and Kenma, occasionally watching the younger boy’s gameplay from over his shoulder. He never seemed to mind her company by the way he would always turn his screen slightly towards her, so she could see better.

As she suspected, with Bokuto pestering Kuroo about something, Kenma was off in the corner playing his game. Like always, he was sitting somewhat near the team, but far enough away to not be bothered to talk to any of them.

“Kenma, can I put a bandaid on your cheek?” Sakura sweetly asked the boy.

He didn’t even bother looking up from his game to reply. “Why?”

“Because it’d look very cute on you, of course!”

Pink dusted Kenma’s cheeks, as he continued his gameplay. His voice didn’t betray him like his face did, though.

“Sure.” He managed, without stuttering.

Sakura’s smile widened, her expression as if she had won the lottery. Kenma saying yes to something was like winning the lottery in a sense, although he usually agreed to her favors more, compared to others.

“And that’s why you’re my favorite!” She beamed, gently putting the popular volleyball bandaid on his cheek. She maneuvered her hands in a way to not interrupt his gameplay, and then reached for her phone. Quickly and quietly with steady hands, she snapped a picture of him sporting the bandaid.

“Hehe, this will be your new contact picture in my phone.”

“Okay,” Kenma replied, too focused on beating the new boss that had appeared in his game.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A/N): just letting y’all know that this series is going to be more of a slice of life type deal rather than heavily focused on the romance aspect (´｡• ᵕ •｡`)


	7. Chapter 7

“Hey, Kuroo!” Sakura pranced towards the boy, her mood significantly up because of her new picture of Kenma.

“What?” he asked, looking at her weirdly. Bokuto stood next to him, his eyes lighting up at her appearance.

“Saku-chan!” He rejoiced. “Did you see that spike I did in that last set?”

“Of course I did, Bo-chan!” she cooed, patting his head. She needed him to be agreeable for her plan to work. Now was not the time for Emo-Bokuto to come out. “No wonder you’re one of the top five spikers in the nation!”

Bokuto’s smile bloomed at her praise, holding his head up high in pride.

“Anyways,” she changed the subject, directing her attention to the other captain. “Kuroo, would you be a dear and wear this bandaid on your face for me.” she said, pushing the bandaid towards him.

“No thanks Potato-chan.” He raised his arms up on his head so she couldn’t place it into his hands.

“Why not?” 

“You do understand what bandaids are for, don’t you?”

“Yeah, they’re for when someone’s in pain.”

He nodded, satisfied with her answer. “Well, do I look like I’m in pain?” he asked, smartly. 

She nodded her head, agreeing with his words. “I see. So what you’re saying is, you’ll only wear the bandaid if you’re in immense pain?”

“Well, not immense pai-“

“Bokuto-san,” she suddenly called, ignoring Kuroo. “Would you mind spiking Kuroo in the face during the next set?” Sakura asked the Fukorodani captain, innocently.

“I would love to Saku-chan, but I would get in trouble.” he reasoned. 

“Oh, don’t worry about that!” she said, waving her hand back and forth. “I’ll handle it.”

“Oh, okay.” Not surprisingly, he was quick to accept her request. “So then was there a specific part of his face you wanted me to aim for?”

“Nah, anywhere on his face is fine. I’m not picky.”

“Hai, hai.” he nodded along, in contemplation.

Watching their interaction with fear evident in his eyes, Kuroo quietly took the bandaid from Sakura, peeling off the plastic before attaching it to his cheek.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“When did you all get matching bandaids?” Coach Naoi asked, noticing the same volleyball design on all of their bandaids.

The team was currently standing outside the main gymnasium in a circle, with the coaches as their center. The final practice match had finished seconds ago, and they were about to be dismissed for free time, to which most of them would end up staying back to practice some more. 

“Oh, we’re all matching!” Inuoka and Lev’s shouted, their eyes widening in surprise.

“Whaaat?” Sakura exaggerated, as if she had just noticed Coach Naoi’s observation. She was wearing a bandaid of her own, on her forehead. “Well, I think this calls for a team picture, don’t you?”

“Yeah!” The two first years agreed readily. 

Shohei, the calmest and most quiet among the first-years, silently nodded.

Seeing the excitement of the first years, the older boys shared glances with each other, before shrugging in agreement. 

“Great! We can use my phone to take it!” she grinned, the mobile already set to camera mode.

Coach Naoi held out his hand to take the camera as she walked closer. But Sakura passed him, instead walking over to Yachi, who was walking out from the gym.

“Yachi-chan, would you mind taking a picture for us really quick?” she asked, holding out her phone. 

“Ahh, h-hai!” Yachi stuttered, hesitantly grabbing the phone. 

“Great, thank you!” Sakura quickly returned to the group, while reaching into her jacket pocket. Pulling out two familiar looking bandaids, she presented them to the two Nekoma coaches with a small smile.

Coach Nekomata breathed out a hearty laugh, while Coach Naoi quickly got over the surprise on his face, shaking his head with a smile.

As the coaches put on their bandaids, the rest of the team walked over to them, slowly filling in the gaps and facing the camera. 

“O-okay. One, t-two, three!” Yachi stammered, though her grip on the camera was surprisingly steady. 

“Cheese!” the group smiled as she took their picture.

After a few shots were taken, Coach Nekomata mentioned something about a reservation and drinking till the sun comes up, dismissing the boys to their free time.

Sakura forced the team to take one more picture together, before making Kuroo take one of just the first-years, Kenma, and her. She looped her left arm with Kenma’s so he couldn’t quietly sneak off. Shohei silently stood on her other side, and Lev and Inuoka sprung up, towering over them from behind.

Kuroo was forced to take multiple shots, after Sakura berated him for the first one ending up blurry. She was able to scavenge one non-blurry picture from the twenty others he had taken, and then proceeded to drag him over to Kai and Yaku. 

A passing Bokuto was asked to take their picture by Sakura, which she learned never to do again, after he somehow kept changing the camera lens to selfie mode for every picture he took. Kaori, who saw this, took pity and offered to take their picture in the end.

**Author's Note:**

> (A/N) Listen, I just got into Haikyuu!!, and it’s my first time writing for Japanese characters. So if I’m wrong in how they address each other, or whatever, keep in mind this is my first time. Also, this is more for my entertainment than anyone else’s so eh. Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Also just letting y’all know that this series is going to be more of a slice of life type deal rather than heavily focused on the romance aspect (´｡• ᵕ •｡`)
> 
> pspspsp: (heheh see what I did there) if you can’t already tell I think all the first year characters are adorable and will protect them to the very end. Also, Kenma is basically an honorary first-year in my mind.


End file.
